Anakin Skywalker
Anakin Skywalker (Darth Vader!) :"You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them! Bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!" :―Obi-Wan Kenobi to Anakin Skywalker, shortly after the latter's transformation into Darth Vader.[src] '''Anakin Skywalker (nicknamed Ani by his mother) was a legendary Force-sensitive Human male who served the Galactic Republic as a Jedi Knight and later served the Galactic Empire as the Sith Lord Darth Vader. Born to Shmi Skywalker, later in life he became the secret husband of Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo and the father of the Jedi Grand Master Luke Skywalker and Jedi Knight Leia Organa Solo. He was also the grandfather of Ben Skywalker, Jaina, Jacen, and Anakin Solo, as well as the great-grandfather of Allana and an ancestor of Nat, Kol, and Cade Skywalker.' '''Although he would later become a crucial figure in the galaxy, Skywalker came from humble origins. He spent the first years of his life on Tatooine as a slave along with his mother. In 32 BBY, Skywalker met Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn. After obtaining his freedom by having been bet on by Jinn and winning the Boonta Eve Classic, Skywalker went with Jinn and departed from Tatooine, though troubled by leaving behind his mother. Skywalker took part in the Battle of Naboo, destroying the Droid Control Station despite his young age. Soon after, he joined the Jedi Order, becoming a Padawan to Obi-Wan Kenobi. Skywalker was believed to be (and indeed was) the Chosen One of Jedi prophecy, one who would bring balance to the Force by destroying the Sith, which was why the Jedi Council chose to bend the Jedi Code and permit his training.' Skywalker and Kenobi traveled together on many missions in the ensuing decade. In 22 BBY, Skywalker was reunited with Padmé Amidala, the former queen of Naboo and new Senator of the Chommell Sector. He escorted her to Naboo due to the rising violence of the Separatist Crisis, and the two fought at the Battle of Geonosis, the beginning of the Clone Wars. In the midst of these events, Skywalker also endured the violent death of his mother. Skywalker and Amidala married soon after the battle, despite the Jedi Order's restrictions of Jedi marriages, which kept them from making their marriage public. Skywalker fought in the Clone Wars with his master and became a Jedi Knight in 22 BBY, taking Ahsoka Tano as his own apprentice. Throughout the conflict, Skywalker became an icon to the public, known as the "Hero With No Fear". Skywalker and Kenobi, despite not being master and apprentice anymore, gained recognition as a formidable pair. Despite this, he carried with him a great sense of loss in addition to great anger. This was shown in 19 BBY at the Battle of Coruscant, when he decapitated an unarmed Count Dooku. He also learned that Amidala would soon have a child and experiences agonizing visions of her death. His inability to control these traits led to his downfall when, soon after, he turned to the dark side, believing that it was the only way to save his wife from death. ' '''Apprenticed to Darth Sidious, better known as his friend Chancellor Palpatine, he became Darth Vader. The Galactic Empire was founded with Palpatine at the helm as Emperor, and after Vader led an attack on the Jedi Temple, the Jedi were exterminated by Order 66, with fewer than a hundred surviving. Two of the survivors were Grand Master Yoda and Skywalker's old master, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Vader dueled his old master on the fiery world of Mustafar, and despite the Sith Lord's new abilities, he was defeated by his old master, and his body was so damaged by the lava that Sidious encased him in a dark life-sustaining suit that he would wear for the rest of his life. His children, Luke and Leia, were born at this time, though Vader remained unaware of their exAs a master of the dark side, Vader became the scourge of the Jedi, continuing the Great Jedi Purge which would last until 1 BBY. An extension of the Emperor's will, the Dark Lord was constantly on the move, traveling throughout the galaxy to defeat rebel uprisings or arrest corrupt Imperials. When Vader began planning to impress his Master before overthrowing him, he found, manipulated, and trained a "secret" Sith apprentice named Galen Marek to not only to help hunt down remaining Jedi, but also to expose the Emperor's enemies and have them destroyed. However, Vader's betrayal lead Marek to turn to the light side and sacrifice his life for the leaders of the Alliance to Restore the Republic to escape, thus starting the Galactic Civil War. Vader continued to train apprentices, this time, under Sidious's notice, including Flint, and the future Sith Lady Lumiya. ' '''In 0 BBY, the Empire's great superweapon, the first Death Star was destroyed by a young Rebel pilot. Vader became obsessed with discovering the identity of this pilot and spent the next several years searching. Vader eventually learned that the pilot's name was Luke Skywalker and deduced that the boy was his son, born before the death of Amidala. Vader fought the Rebel Alliance while concocting a plan to turn his son to the dark side. Soon after the Battle of Hoth, Vader dueled his son and revealed to him that he was his father, which Luke refused to believe. Darth Sidious, however, was aware of Vader's plans and initiated his own plot to make young Luke his apprentice. In 4 ABY, the two sides came together at Endor for one great battle to decide the fate of the galaxy. Luke surrendered to Vader and, in the throne room of the second Death Star, Sidious attempted to turn the young Jedi to the dark side by having him duel Vader. Luke defeated Vader, but refused to give himself to the darkness, proclaiming himself a Jedi like his father before him. When Sidious attempted to kill Luke using Force lightning, Anakin Skywalker emerged from Darth Vader and came to his son's rescue, saving him and killing the Emperor by throwing him down the main reactor core. Mortally wounded by the Force lightning, he died soon afterward, but he died as a Jedi once more, having redeemed himself by saving his son and fulfilling the prophecy of the Chosen One. Pre-birth (before 42 BBY) "Is this—is this happening now, or in the future?" ―Q'Anilia Anakin Skywalker appears in a vision as the Sith Lord he would later become. Thousands of years before his birth, Anakin Skywalker appeared in a vision to Jedi Master Q'Anilia as Darth Vader, along with his son, Luke Skywalker and his descendant, Cade Skywalker, as well as Zayne Carrick. All four of these individuals would later be affected by the Muur Talisman. The vision also showed Karness Muur, hundreds of Rakghouls, and a burning city. Skywalker's mother, Shmi Skywalker, claimed that her son was conceived without a father, but could not explain how that had happened. It was the theory of Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn that the will of the Force caused his birth. There is evidence to suggest that Skywalker's birth may have been engineered by the Sith Lord Darth Plagueis as part of an experiment in immortality. Early life (42 BBY–32 BBY) "I'm a person, and my name is Anakin!" ―Anakin Skywalker to Padmé Amidala Anakin and Shmi Skywalker arrive on Tatooine. Anakin Skywalker was born in 41.9 BBY. According to the seminal historical work of Voren Na'al, the planet of his birth was Tatooine, but Skywalker himself may have implied that he was only raised on the arid planet from around the age of three. At that time, Skywalker and his mother became slaves to Gardulla the Hutt. Years later, Gardulla lost the boy and his mother in a podracing bet to a Toydarian junk dealer named Watto. Even at a young age, Skywalker had a reputation for being able to build or repair anything, evidenced by his creation of a protocol droid named C-3PO as well as a podracer. Both were constructed from salvaged parts and nearly completed by the time he was nine years old. A child prodigy, Skywalker excelled at mathematics and engineering, but he was also daring and adventurous. He would often risk his own well being to help others, with little forethought or regard for the consequences of his actions. When he was only five years old, Skywalker scaled an immense dune to chase a herd of banthas away from hunters, despite almost collapsing from heat and exhaustion several times. Sometime later, while bartering with Jawas, Skywalker came across a wounded Tusken Raider (unknowing that years later he would hate Tusken Raiders because of the death of his mother) and took care of it until the Tusken was taken away by his own people. A short time before the Boonta Eve Classic podrace, Skywalker, his friend Kitster Banai, and several other youths narrowly avoided a run-in with Gardulla. After hearing of children who had been captured and imprisoned by Sebulba in hopes of selling them to Gardulla, Skywalker and his friends disguised themselves as Jawas and sneaked into Gardulla's estate to free the Ghostling children. At about eight years of age, Skywalker had his first experience with the Sith. While rummaging through Watto's junk heap, he located an ancient war droid. Hoping to recover a holoprojector for Watto, Skywalker incidentally activated a disturbing hologram, drowned in cries and screams and the strange mention of the word "Sith." Perplexed, Skywalker rushed to the stranded Republic Fighter Corps member who had told him earlier of the angels on the moons of Iego. The spacer, in shock, told him of the 4,000-year-old wrath of the Sith and how they eventually turned inward and fought each other, bringing about their own doom. He spoke of the belief that one Sith Lord had survived and extended the order's existence to this day. Little did Skywalker know that such rumors Skywalker as a slave on Tatooine would play a major part in his life in later years. Skywalker as a slave on Tatooine DiscoveryEdit "Anakin, this path has been placed before you. The choice is yours alone." Shmi Skywalker In 32 BBY, Skywalker's life changed forever. By happenstance, while working in Watto's shop, Skywalker met Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, Jar Jar Binks, R2-D2 and a young teenage girl named Padmé Amidala. The girl fascinated Skywalker so much that he asked if she was an angel. Amidala was not an angel, but a queen - Her Majesty Queen Amidala of Naboo in disguise as a Skywalker races in the Boonta Eve Classic. simple handmaiden. Skywalker races in the Boonta Eve Classic.When a sandstorm began brewing, Skywalker offered his new-found friends shelter in the simple home he shared with his mother. There, Jinn and Amidala recounted their plight of how they became stranded on Tatooine on their way to Coruscant due to a leak in their hyperdrive. Overwhelmed with compassion, Skywalker volunteered to enter a podrace, a daring and extremely dangerous contest, claiming that the prize money for winning would enable his companions to purchase the parts needed to repair their starship. Though Shmi Skywalker initially objected to the plan, Anakin recalled her words that "the biggest problem in the universe that nobody helped each other." Persuaded, Shmi Skywalker reluctantly agreed to let her son race. Just before the race, Jinn made a bet with Watto that if Skywalker won, the boy would be freed. However, Watto, unwilling to give up his valuable slave, specified one condition—that he roll a chance cube to decide which of his slaves could be freed. If the cube rolled blue, Skywalker would be freed; red, Shmi Skywalker would be freed instead. The die was weighted to land on red, but Jinn used the Force to make the cube flip to blue. The Toydarian, positive the boy would lose, accepted the results regardless, his assumption based on the obvious: humans normally lacked the fast reactions needed to operate a land vehicle that ran at such tremendous speeds as a podracer. However, Skywalker's latent Force sensitivity, manifested in the form of limited prescience, gave the impression that the boy had lightning-fast reflexes. At the time, Skywalker, who dreamed of being a Jedi, but lacked knowledge of the Force, believed his foresight was only instinct that told him what he needed to do. Skywalker won the Boonta Eve Classic podrace, enabling Jinn was able to free him, but since the Jedi Master was unable to secure Shmi's release (because Watto would only let one slave go free), Anakin was forced to choose between staying with his mother or following his dreams to become a Jedi. He chose to go with Jinn, though he promised his mother that he would come back to free her and all the slaves on Tatooine. Even after the Battle of Naboo, in which Skywalker and his new companions were entangled, ended victoriously, neither the Jedi nor the Republic made any effort to emancipate her. Skywalker's duties as a Jedi prevented him from freeing his mother himself, though she eventually obtained her freedom from Watto after being sold too a moisture farmer named Skywalker as a pilot during the Battle of Naboo Cliegg Lars who freed and married her. Skywalker as a pilot during the Battle of NabooAfter departing to Mos Espa, Jinn and Skywalker approached the Naboo Royal Starship, but were attacked by Sith Lord Darth Maul, who sought to capture Queen Amidala. While Jinn engaged the Sith in battle, Skywalker rushed ahead and warned those already onboard. The ship lifted off and, after rescuing Jinn, they left Tatooine to head for Coruscant. While on the journey to Coruscant, Skywalker further bonded with Amidala, giving her a Japor snippet he had carved for her to remember him. Years later, Amidala would be buried carrying that same snippet. Upon arriving at Coruscant, Skywalker faced the Jedi High Council and was tested concerning Jinn's belief that Skywalker was the Chosen One and should be trained as a Jedi. Skywalker's gifts cemented Jinn's belief on the matter, but the Council remained skeptical. Jinn requested to train Skywalker after his current apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, completed his trials, but his request was denied. Skywalker was much older than the usual Padawan, and the Council was concerned that his prior experiences would interfere with his training. In particular, he exhibited much fear and anger, emotions that were further compounded by his separation from his mother. The Council believed he simply would not be able to master the level of emotional detachment required by a member of the Jedi Order. Kenobi, while also amazed at Skywalker's unprecedented midi-chlorian count—over twenty thousand—and strong potential, initially agreed with the Council's decision. With nowhere to go on Coruscant, and no way to return to Tatooine, Skywalker followed his new friends on their mission to free Naboo from the Trade Federation's invasion. Skywalker becomes Kenobi's Padawan. Ultimately, Skywalker fought in the Battle of Naboo in a vicious starfighter battle above the planet. After accidentally joining the battle in orbit, Skywalker single-handedly destroyed the orbital Droid Control Ship from within the ship, moments after Lt. Gavyn Sykes destroyed the shield generator, thus rendering the Trade Federation's ground forces inactive and saving the Gungan Grand Army from destruction. The following celebration, however, was tainted with the death of Jinn, slain by Darth Maul. The Master's dying wish was for Kenobi to undertake Skywalker's training, which Kenobi promised to fulfill. The Council reluctantly agreed for Kenobi to begin Skywalker's training, though they were concerned that Skywalker would be too difficult a student for young Kenobi to handle, due to young age. Meanwhile, Palpatine, the Republic's newly-appointed Supreme Chancellor, promised Skywalker that he would watch the young Jedi's career with great interest, beginning a long friendship between the young Jedi and the new ruler of the Republic. Adolescence (32 BBY–22 BBY) Skywalker, right after joining the Jedi Order "The boy has exceptional skills." "But he still has much to learn, Master. His abilities have made him… well, arrogant." ―Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi As a young adult, Skywalker developed as an arrogant and somewhat socially awkward young man, doubtless in part because of his rapid transition from a scrapyard slave to rising star of the Jedi Order. His natural abilities placed him leaps and bounds above his peers which fed his ego and caused him to distance himself from other learners his age. He frequently showed off, chafed against authority, and displayed little respect for Kenobi, whom he partially viewed as inferior. Despite this perception, he stated that Kenobi was like a father to him, and claimed that Kenobi had the wisdom of Master Yoda and the power of Master Windu. This praise, however, may have been just another expression of Skywalker's arrogance, as he amended that he himself was "beyond" Kenobi in many ways, and felt Kenobi was holding him back from his true potential. His relationship with his master remained complicated and contradictory, partially due to Kenobi's doubts about whether he had the ability to train Skywalker, something the boy did not need, especially during that critical time in his life. Frustrated, Skywalker would turn to another mentor for advice: Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. "Perhaps he reminds me too much of myself at the same age. Arrogant. Impulsive. Proud. I realize humility is high among the enforced virtues, the ones no one acquires by choice; but that being said, if Fate is looking for something to humble Skywalker, I confess myself willing to volunteer. " ―Count Dooku More SOOOON